


Handle with care

by nashapixie



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Fluff, Gen, If You Squint - Freeform, Pre-Bucky Barnes/Tony Stark
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-16
Updated: 2020-04-16
Packaged: 2021-03-02 04:35:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 734
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23689294
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nashapixie/pseuds/nashapixie
Summary: James "Bucky" Barnes is recovering after the fall of Hydra, which includes some arm maintenance that only one man can help with: Tony Stark.
Comments: 8
Kudos: 22
Collections: Bucky Barnes Bingo 2020, Tony Stark Bingo 2020





	Handle with care

**Author's Note:**

> Many thanks to Penndragon for betaing and coming up with the title! 💜
> 
> Title: Handle with care  
> Author: Nasha  
> Card Number: 3011  
> Square Filled: adopted prompt - I'll sleep when I'm dead & BBB B4 - image: Tony fixing Bucky's arm   
> Ship/Main Pairing: pre-winteriron if you squint   
> Rating: gen  
> Major Tags: fluff  
> Summary: James "Bucky" Barnes is recovering after the fall of Hydra, which includes some arm maintenance that only one man can help with: Tony Stark.  
> Word Count: 734

James loved being in the workshop. The place was so far beyond any of his wildest dreams when he thought of the future back in the forties, it was where he felt more safe in the entire tower, sure in the knowledge that no one could get in easily nor could he get out if he relapsed into the Winter soldier (something rare these days but still a possibility) and that Tony would always protect him, from others or himself.

The first time he entered the place, he was understandably quite nervous; still a jittery mess most of the time, paranoid of everything, only trusting Stevie near him. What was presented to his eyes when he no longer could dissuade his friend that everything was okay with his arm, even if the pain was getting to new highs and the hand glitched every couple of minutes or so, was nothing like those he knew, that plagued his nightmares. For starters, it was bright with plenty of white and blue lights everywhere he looked, filled with screens full of designs, long mathematical problems, chemical formulas, statistics, news coverage of all over the world, things he couldn't even fathom what they were. Then he saw all the mechanical parts lying around everywhere, like a small tempest had been unleashed in there, and on the walls: the incredible sight of the Iron Man armours around them like the most awesome exhibition he'd ever seen.  
There was no way to feel triggered there, on the contrary, he finally felt a bit relaxed surrounded by all those wonders.

The other incredible sight before him was the man himself: the genius that created all that he was admiring sporting disheveled hair, grease stains everywhere, and worn down clothes, so different from the look he usually showed in public settings. It was like seeing two opposite sides of a coin, just like the lab.  
Illuminated by the blue projections and giving life to wonders with his fingers (sometimes literally, he would learn later) he seemed from another world and when he turned around, looking directly at him with warm brown eyes with no fear at all and gave them a big sunny smile, the world felt the tiniest bit lighter, like a ray of light breaking through dark grey clouds.

With time he would discover that this was the real Tony Stark: with too much coffee and almost no solid food for days; without sleeping or showering while being absorbed in whatever new idea his mind had latched onto. Getting him out of his inventive binges was always a struggle; the genius always reiterating that he didn't need to sleep, that he wasn't dead yet, that sleep was for the weak, even if he could barely keep his eyes open. It was nice seeing him like this.  
James also realized that although he seemed aloof and joked about almost everything, he actually cared, a lot. Tony just didn't know how to show it in normal ways.  
Like he knew at first glance that he was in pain, that the arm was malfunctioning and was not only designed to complement the weapon that was the Asset, but also as a torture device for the man permanently trying to break free from the conditioning. The man was so careful approaching his arm, explaining everything he was going to do and patiently waiting for the panic that almost overwhelmed him to subside, using the gentlest of touches to minimize the pain he could cause while removing plates and checking all the internal components that made the machinery work. 

The moment the genius fixed whatever was wrong felt like truly being released for the first time of Hydra's clutches, he was still carrying all the extra weight but the absence of that searing pain finally felt like freedom and more than a bit of hope. He didn't realize the moment he started crying, but suddenly the strong arms of Steve were surrounding him while he sobbed with relief, both men uttering words of comfort, Stark even asking permission to rub his back, which made him cry even harder, because he couldn't remember the last time someone had asked for his consent, that it was purely to make him feel better, in that moment he knew this was the safest place where he could be and that he made the right choice accepting Steve's outstretched hand.


End file.
